This invention relates to improvements in a connector for electric connection.
A connector having an insulator housing is already known wherein a flap having a pair of locking lugs formed on opposite sides thereof and a plurality of terminal holding shoulders formed thereon corresponding to terminal receiving chambers of the insulator housing is hingedly connected for movement toward and away from a wall of the insulator housing, whereby when the flap is moved toward the wall to close the terminal receiving chambers of the insulator housing, the shoulders are engaged with terminals inserted in the terminal receiving chambers to prevent the terminals from being pulled off the insulator housing while the flap is locked to the housing due to engagement of the locking lugs of the flap with inner side edges of the wall of the housing.
According to the prior art arrangement, if the number of terminals is increased, the width of the flap is increased accordingly. In an insulator housing having such a wide flap, the flap may be locked if only one of the locking lugs operates effectively while it is overlooked that the other locking lug is left unlocked, and hence some terminals may be pulled off the insulator housing. Besides, because a plurality of shoulders are formed integrally on the flap, even when only one of terminal must be replaced, the entire flap must necessarily be opened and closed. Thus, the prior art arrangement is inconvenient for operation. In addition, because the flap is hinged at a rear portion of the insulator housing, the flap may be opened and closed independently of its engagement with or disengagement from a companion housing.
A connector is also known wherein a flap having a terminal fixing element thereon is hingedly connected to a wall of a housing for movement toward and away from the wall, whereby when the flap is moved toward the wall to close an opening formed in the wall and opened to a terminal receiving chamber of the insulator housing, the terminal fixing element is engaged with a terminal inserted in the terminal receiving chamber to prevent the terminal from being pulled off the housing while the flap is locked to the housing due to engagement of a pair of laterally extending locking lugs of the terminal fixing element with inner side edges of the wall of the housing defining the opening. Lower faces of the locking lugs are tapered to push the inner side edges of the opening outwardly from each other to allow the terminal fixing element to pass therethrough.
However, in the conventional connector described just above, the width B1 of the terminal fixing element, that is, the dimension between opposite end faces of the locking lugs of the terminal fixing element, is somewhat greater than the width B2 of the opening, and as the lap width which can be indicated by the difference .DELTA.B between them, that is, B1-B2, increases, the terminal locking force of the housing increases. But this also increases the force required to press the terminal fixing element into the opening. As a result, plastic deformation may appear at the locking lugs of the terminal fixing element and/or a wall portion of the opening of the insulator housing to disable further fitting or removal of the terminal into or out of the opening.
Further, when the terminal fixing element is to be pressed into the opening, it is first engaged at positions thereof relatively remote from the hinge with the edges of the opening. Therefore, a relatively great force is required actually to press the terminal fixing element into the opening.